There is a rumor that Southeast Texas is 10 years behind the rest of the civilized world. This may or may not be true, but it has taken us a while to get on the food truck train.

Robin Cappel and her partner Cyd Cappel, owners of the food truck called Lagniappe at Yummo’s, are hoping to be on the ground floor of the trend in Southeast Texas.

Robin frequently visits Austin for the laid-back vibe but always returns to her home.

“We go to Austin and eat at all the food trailers and try different stuff,” she said. “I would really like to have a spot here with a few trailers, to sit outside, hang out and listen to music.”

For now, she has made her own space in the parking lot of Dejean Automotive.

“We love what we do — we don’t just throw food together,” Robin said. “I want it to taste how I would want to eat it.”

That means fresh and from-scratch, from the hand-cut and battered french fries to the BBQ sauce to the crab cakes.

The selection is heavy on seafood and Cajun favorites like po boys and shrimp etouffee, and also includes Robin’s smoked pulled pork. She draws from her experience in her family’s restaurant, Carpel’s, which was open in the ’80s under the Rainbow Bridge.

“All my family is Cajun from Lousiana,” Robin said. “My dad always told me when he met my mom, she had webbed feet from being in the bayou.”

David Smith prepares an order of homemade onion rings, french fries, and hush puppies inside the Lagniappe at Yummo's food truck. Randy Edwards/cat5

David Smith prepares an order of homemade onion rings, french fries, and hush puppies inside the Lagniappe at Yummo's food truck. Randy Edwards/cat5

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A little something extra in the street food scene

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Recommendations: Booger Hollier lives in Beaumont, but makes the drive just for the ettouffee.

“I’m a coonass, so I know what good food tastes like,” he said. “I’ve eaten all over the world. My grandma was the best cook in the world, but this etouffee beats hers. This place is something else.”

Kim Cherry was picking up lunch for the office.

“We come at least once or twice a week,” she said. “They’re friendly and the food is good. I like the crab cake burgers. A lot of the guys get the fish tacos and pulled pork. Their fries are out of this world.”

“I always get the bacon cheeseburger,” she said. “It’s amazing, and I’m someone that eats out everyday. The fries with the homemade dipping sauce are different. The chicken sausage gumbo is by far the best I’ve eaten around here, with a good, dark coonass roux.”

Ursula Brown frequents Lagniappe at least three times a week.

“I can’t find this type of food anywhere,” she said. “I’m from Louisiana and it reminds me of home. I like everything — the fries, the wings, and the seafood is fresh. During Lent I gave up meat completely and came here almost every day. I had the crab-stuffed peppers and fries a lot, and it was perfect. And the wings are seasoned just right — they’re not this good at any restaurant.”

As with most food trucks, locations and hours vary — next week, Lagniappe will be at Port Neches Riverfest. Track the truck by finding ‘Lagniappe at Yummo’s’ on Facebook.

The drink situation: includes soda and bottled water. If you need an adult beverage, take your tasty goodness home and enjoy it with your choice of spirit.

Atmosphere: is food truck chic. There is a comfy covered area in front of the truck with some picnic tables if you feel like “dining in.”

Extras and Specials: Lagniappe also caters. Crab balls and pulled pork sandwiches sound like a pretty great wedding reception offering to me.

The verdict: If you still see food trucks as dirty — or simply hocking sub-par fair food — it’s time you got out more. Some made-from scratch Cajun fare from Lagniappe at Yummo’s is a pretty good start.